Wednesday, 30 August 2023

Ministers statements: Hanging Rock precinct development

Ingrid STITT (Western Metropolitan – Minister for Early Childhood and Pre-Prep, Minister for Environment) (12:38): I would like to update the house on how the Andrews Labor government is securing the future of Hanging Rock with the purchase of Hanging Rock’s east paddock and the release of a new master plan for this culturally significant and widely cherished landscape. I was very proud to join the member for Macedon in the other place, representatives from Macedon Ranges Shire Council, members of the local community and representatives from three traditional owner groups – the Dja Dja Wurrung Clans Aboriginal Corporation, the Taungurung Land and Waters Council and the Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung Cultural Heritage Aboriginal Corporation – on country at Hanging Rock to announce that the newly acquired east paddock will be officially integrated into the Hanging Rock reserve.

Hanging Rock is an incredibly popular tourist destination, with more than 120,000 visitors a year, a number that is expected to double over the next decade. The new master plan outlines carefully considered actions that will benefit the site and ensure that increasing visitor numbers do not negatively impact this special place. The master plan acknowledges and celebrates traditional owners’ enduring relationship with the land and nature and provides for traditional owner expertise in managing tourism and cultural education experiences. With environmental sustainability and ecological integrity at its heart, the plan also recommends regenerating areas within the precinct, and the purchase of the east paddock brings it into the precinct’s boundary. It will continue to cater for a range of temporary uses, such as special music events, that contribute to the economy and the culture of the Macedon Ranges.

I would like to thank everybody who has been involved in the development of the master plan over the past two years. It is an enormous amount of work to develop an agreed road map for the future management of this iconic site.